Monday, February 23, 2009

Health Care Cut Backs

... are affecting everyone:
"Doctors are noticing the trend as patients skip or defer treatments because of the troubled economy.

Many decline procedures even when they have medical insurance, doctors said, because the procedures are so expensive they can't afford the out-of-pocket costs. For a colonoscopy, a stress test, an MRI or a CT scan, the patient's co-pay can run to hundreds of dollars."
It was interesting to note that the article quoted a local "recently retired" internist. The untold story within this story is that hospital systems are equally strained as procedural revenues dwindle, placing increased pressure on their physician workforces to "produce."

-Wes

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wes,

Yes, we must continue to feed the beast.

One thing I find that is a positive aspect of this economic downturn is that it gives one pause to consider what is important and what is not. Big lumbering and outrageously expensive health systems that have invested in waterfalls and concierge services may now need to rethink these strategies. As more and more people lose their insurance and/or are underinsured, the more the unpaid bills at hospitals will swell. Meanwhile, as you have so nicely shown, the building boom continues at our health care meccas, which have yet to be signicantly wounded (thanks to continued payments from Medicare; that dreaded goverment insurance program that threatens to subject us all to Soviet style medicine).

Time to build your moat!